If you're a pregnant smoker, giving up cigarettes is one of the best things you can do for your baby. But it could also be one of the hardest. Chances are, your smoking is more than just a habit or a way to pass the time. It's an addiction. When you give up that addiction, you can expect to feel cravings — sudden, powerful urges to light up again. When they first strike, these cravings may seem unstoppable, like a riptide pulling you under. But no matter how strong those urges feel, you can be even stronger. You can face your cravings head-on without giving in. Eventually the cravings will pass, leaving you time to cope with other urges, like your fierce but impractical desire to hold your new baby every minute of the day.

What causes cravings?

The next time you look at a pack of cigarettes, picture 20 little syringes all loaded with an addictive drug. When you puff on a cigarette, your brain gets a blast of nicotine within seconds. Not even an injection could work any faster. Once nicotine hits your brain, it acts much like any other addictive drug. Specifically, it stimulates the brain's pleasure centers, the same parts that dish out pleasant feelings as a reward for things like having sex or drinking a cold glass of water on a hot day. Nobody would say that a rush of nicotine feels like sex — it's more in that glass-of-water territory — but it's good enough to make the brain want more, more, more.

Cravings can kick in whenever your brain notices a shortfall of the drug. Cravings can also start whenever you get a "cue" that it's time to smoke. Even if your blood is coursing with nicotine from a patch, you could still get a strong craving if you catch a whiff of cigarette smoke or if you happen to visit your favorite place to light up. In fact, just about anything your brain associates with smoking — a place, an object, an emotion – can suddenly ignite a strong urge to smoke. If you always smoke when you read the newspaper, for instance, you probably won't be able to get past the first page without feeling a craving.

For Joy Dewell, a 29-year-old mother living in Bozeman, Montana, cravings went hand-in-hand with stress. Although never a heavy smoker — she usually maxed out at about a half-pack a day — Dewell habitually lighted a cigarette whenever she felt anxious or upset. When she learned a little more than three years ago that she was pregnant, the anxiety started coming in waves. "It was an unplanned pregnancy, and my husband and I knew that our lives were about to change forever," she says. "We took a look at our financial situation and wondered if we were ready." She quit smoking immediately after she found out she was pregnant, but the urge to smoke would hit her hard whenever she thought about the size of her checking account or the housing prices in Bozeman.

How long will my cravings last?

Cravings are tough, but, fortunately, they're also very fleeting. "A craving will pass in three to five minutes, whether or not you light up," says Carol Orleans, a senior scientist with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the creator of the Free & Clear smoking cessation program. As soon as the craving passes, that next cigarette no longer seems so necessary. In order to successfully quit, you'll have to be ready to beat those cravings, five minutes at a time.

Cravings are usually most intense three to five days after quitting, and they stay strong for a couple of weeks. After that, your brain slowly adjusts to a life without nicotine, but you won't be completely in the clear. Whenever your brain gets a cue that it's time to smoke — whether it's a smell, a sight, or an emotion — it will call out for a cigarette. Most quitters have to fight occasional cravings for at least a year, says Gary Tedeschi, a psychologist with the University of California, San Diego, and the clinical director of the California Smokers' Helpline. After going through every day on the calendar without a cigarette, it's possible to start thinking of yourself as a nonsmoker, he says. And when you're a nonsmoker, it'll take more than the smell of smoke or a little stress to make you think about lighting up.

How can I beat cravings?

Carol Orleans, a successful quitter herself, says smokers should recognize cravings for what they are: A trick from a particularly mischievous part of the brain. "When a craving comes on, you can translate it," Orleans says. "Tell yourself 'Ah, this is a craving,' and then get ready to congratulate yourself for making it through."

But recognizing a craving is only the first step. You should be ready to take action. Anything you can do to distract yourself for those five minutes can make the difference between success and failure. You probably won't be thinking too clearly when that craving arrives, so be sure to plan ahead.

Your options for getting through a craving are almost infinite. "Just do anything but sit there and think about cigarettes," Orleans says. Drink a tall glass of water. Do a puzzle. Try some deep breathing. Call an ex-smoker for support. Suck on a piece of hard candy or chew on a menthol-flavored toothpick. Dewell forced herself to take a brisk walk whenever she felt the urge to smoke. In many cases, walking was an escape as much as a distraction, she says. When somebody near her lit up a cigarette, she knew she had to make a quick getaway before giving in.

What should I do if I can't resist cravings?

If you feel like your cravings are too strong to resist for even five minutes, talk to your doctor about your options. Nicotine patches or gums can take some of the edge off your cravings and make it easier to quit. These products are available over the counter, but you should definitely talk to your doctor before giving them a try. Some types of nicotine replacements — such as the 24-hour patches — may give you more nicotine than you really need. And while nicotine is safer than the toxic brew in cigarette smoke, it might be harmful to your baby in large amounts.

Another potential option is Zyban (bupropion), a drug that blunts cravings by blocking some key chemical messengers in the pleasure center of the brain. (Zyban is generally considered safe, but it hasn't been thoroughly tested in pregnant women.) Again, your doctor can help you choose a product that improves your chances of quitting without putting your baby at risk.

Whatever approach you take, remember that every craving will pass. No matter what your brain tells you, you don't need that next cigarette. And neither does your baby.

This Internet site provides information of a general nature and is designed for educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your own health or the health of your child, you should always consult with a physician or other healthcare professional. Please review the Terms of Use before using this site. Your use of the site indicates your agreement to be bound by the Terms of Use.

This site is published by BabyCenter, L.L.C., which is responsible for its contents as further described and qualified in the Terms of Use.